Micah's Journey
by whitenox26
Summary: At fifteen years old Micah Kayne finally gets up the courage to leave home and start his Pokemon journey. With his new friends Sera and his Pokemon he battles on through the Indigo League and on to the Masters Tourney.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a new Pokemon journey which will include all of the old characters from the show. However, it is centered on original characters, and an original tournament called the Master's Tourney.  
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Home Isn't Where the Heart Is

Cheers pulsed through the crowd as Micah battled for the chance to be the champion of the Indigo League. The air was warm and sweat dripped down his right brow; the time had come for him to prove his skills as a Pokémon Master. Five Pokémon were down on each side, and he knew which pokeball he would be reaching for, his trusted fire type that had won him so many battles in the past. He pulled his hood over the top of his head, dead focused on a victory and reached for his pokeball. Go-

"MICAH! Where are you?" called his dad Shane from a floor below.

Micah cursed under his breath, and mumbled loud enough for his father to hear, "I'm coming dad, calm down."

It was warm outside—summer now. Micah jumped down from his bed and looked out his window; in the deep distance, through the shadowy haze he could see the snow capped peaks of Mount Moon. He stared, fog filling up the window. Why couldn't his dream be real? He was going to stop daydreaming and be a Pokémon Master, or at least make it to the Indigo League. That was his dream, to make the Indigo League and show his parents Pokémon weren't a waste of time and too dangerous for him to train.

Confidence boiled inside; he was going to go on his Pokémon journey, and his parents could not stop him. But first he needed to get a bite to eat; daydreaming can make you hungry after all.

He pulled his face off the grey window, leaving a perfect imprint of his imperfections. He turned on the spot and walked out of his room. He was going to strut downstairs and explain it all to his parents. But he had to wash his face and hands first. His mom might get mad if he wasn't clean for supper.

He reached the bathroom and looked straight into the mirror; his dark blue eyes studied the glass like it was a portal to the future. As usual his hair was a mess, brown strands plummeting left and right out of his scalp. Not too long though, he hated when it covered his eyes.

He turned on the faucet and splashed the warm water on his face; it was always soothing to feel it up against his scar. He remembered it like it was yesterday; the first time he had laid eyes on a Pokémon, he was attacked and clawed across his eye. To this day, thirteen years later, he still had the scar, a fresh memory of the past. For some reason he liked it though, and he never had any hard feelings, after all he was near the mother's babies. He always felt like his scar made him different, but it also changed his future for the worse.

He shut off the faucet and reached the staircase. He took a deep breath, threw on his black hood and whispered, "They will listen, they have to this time!"

He reached the bottom of the stairs and slowly walked into the kitchen; he lost his courageous gait and now was slumping like a depressed rag doll. He pulled out his chair and sat down next to his father while his mother Christi and older brother Nathan sat across the table.

His mother huffed, "What took you so long Micah?"

Micah rolled his eyes, "I had to wash up."

His mother nodded her head in approval, but it didn't seem to impress his father who just shook his head in disgust. "Did you finish looking over those college applications yet?"

Before Micah could answer, Nathan jutted in laughing, "Of course he didn't. All he wants to do is be a 'Pokémon Master'."

Micah threw down his fork: he wasn't hungry anymore. He stood up and yelled, "Listen, just because all of you are doctors doesn't mean _I_ want to be one. I'm fifteen. Why do I have to look at colleges when everyone is already off on their journeys? As it is I'm five whole years behind."

Micah's dad's face turned tickle me pink to burnt red to plum purple in a matter of seconds. He too stood up and screamed, "Pokémon are a waste of time. Where will you get money? Where will you live? Don't think your mother and I are going to give you money to start with this nonsense. You're staying here in Saffron City and interning under me to become a doctor!"

Micah's face felt hot and his scar pricked with hate. He turned to his mom, eyes filling with water. She quickly stood up and gave her older son a dirty look. She motioned to her husband to calm down and said, "Listen Micah, you're too young to make your own decisions. Pokémon are too dangerous anyway; you know firsthand." She reached her hand out to touch his scar but Micah had had enough.

He stared at his mom, then his dad, then his brother and cried, "Fine, don't support me. Pop said he would give me a few bucks to start on my journey. I'm going to his house tomorrow morning to see what he says. I don't really care what you guys want anymore, since you clearly don't care what I want!" He lowered his voice to a squeak and mumbled, "I'm going to pack. Don't bother to try changing my mind."

Micah stormed back up the stairs, eyes watering but still proud of his accomplishment. He may have been leaving on the wrong note but at least he was leaving to a better life.

When he got back in his room he closed and locked his door, assuming his parents would come raging up after him. He wiped his eyes and pulled out his backpack from under his bed. It was blue with silver trim and held a lot more than you would expect. Then Micah began to rip out his clothes from his closet: shirts, shorts, pants, pajamas and he of course was wearing his lucky sweatshirt. It was all black with light blue and grey thread lining the ends of the arms and hood, and on the back his name was sewn in a large font.

He finished packing in a few minutes. He had been dreaming of this day for years so he already had known he wouldn't be able to pack too much. He threw in some other small personal items and then decided to go to bed early since he wanted to get up and leave before his parents had even woken. It took him a few hours to fall asleep, but he fell into a deep, deep dream.

The sun sank low in the distance. Pidgey and Pidgeotto chirped throughout the trees. In front of the dense forest was a small lake that bordered a soft, smooth prairie. It was downtrodden, perfectly flat from years and years of being walked on. He was standing in the midst of small, almost nature-made battlefield. He looked up across the short grassy plain and saw an opponent—it was his brother Nathan. He focused his eyes and then it was his father. He shook his head and the figure morphed into his mother. It was everyone that didn't believe in him.

His opponent stepped forward and said, "One on one battle. You win, you earn my blessing."

Micah craned his neck sideways, not knowing how to handle this ultimatum. But he figured it was worth a try so he called back, "Fine, let's battle!"

His opponent only laughed and reached in his pocket. He pulled out a pokeball and screamed, "Arceus, I choose you!"

Micah's jaw dropped when he saw Arceus materialize out of the red film. He had never heard of Arceus, let alone seen one. Maybe it was a Pokémon foreign to Kanto. He stiffened his neck, took a deep breath, and reached in his pocket, wondering what Pokémon he was holding. Maybe the electric type Zapdos, or the extremely rare Mew?

He threw on his hood, gazed directly at his brother/mother/father and fished for his pokeball, which he found, clipped to his belt.

He closed his eyes, threw out the pokeball and screamed, "I choose you!"

The red light streamed out of the ball fading into the shape of a…Magikarp. Micah's eyes flew open. He was carrying the weakest of all Pokémon, how could he beat that Arceus thing? He gaped at the little orange fish in the water yelling, 'karp, karp, karp!'

His opponent laughed louder and snickered, "Arceus: Judgment."

Light glowed around Arceus—he radiated such power. Before Micah could do anything, Arceus shot a ray of such strength the earth trembled and Magikarp was shot down, lying passed out in the water. One attack had defeated him.

Micah awoke with a startle. Reciting to himself 'It was only a dream, it was only a dream.' But he had been shaken by it, real badly. It was like all his worries came true in one battle. He lost the battle, and his parents respect.

But he couldn't let that stop him.

He pulled down his covers and neatly remade his bed. He stopped and looked at his room, and thought to himself _this could be my last time in here_. That cheered him up. He took off his pajamas and put on his favorite hoodie, along with a pair of white washed jeans and his black and white sneakers. Checking his bag one last time he exited his room, opening the door to his new future.

When he arrived downstairs none of the lights were on. It was eerie seeing his house for the last time, but at the same time it made his insides jump for joy. As he reached the front door to turn the knob he heard a sob behind his back. It was his mom. He had tried to leave early to avoid this exact situation but he almost knew it would happen. He turned his head to his mom and asked, "Are you okay?"

She sobbed in her hands, "No. I messed up. We should have let you go years ago. It's clear your accident had no negative effect on you." She wiped her eyes and smiled, "Good luck. Your father won't be happy, but if you're happy then I'm happy." She reached next to her and handed Micah a small bag, "Here, it's enough food for at least a week and some money and…well you'll see." She sprung up, looking happier by the second. "I called your grandfather; he's expecting you by noon. I'll be cheering for you."

She handed him the bag and hugged him. He suddenly felt much stronger. He would prove to his father and brother he could train hard at something other than medicine.

He turned back toward the door. "Thanks. I'll be in touch."


	2. Chapter 2

The Master's Tourney

It was still dark outside. The moon shone its last remaining light through the sky, painting the world a shadowy grey and blue. Micah turned down his street, hoping to see some Pokémon on the way to his grandfather's, but at the moment everything was asleep. He walked on for miles and miles over bridges and through forests. Now there were Pokémon everywhere. He saw Pidgey, Diglett, Magikarp, and Poliwag—pretty much everything he could imagine. Some he didn't even know the names of.

Butterflies rose aloft in his stomach. He couldn't wait to get his first Pokémon of his own and train with it every day.

Within a few hours he reached his grandfather's house in Vermillion City. It was small, perched on the top of a mountain overlooking the ocean that docked the S.S. Anne. Brick paved the way up the little mountain to a white sided home. Micah reached the large red door and knocked. In the distance he heard his grandfather call out, "Come in. It's unlocked."

He opened the door and stepped inside. It smelt like home cooked bread and Micah felt himself suddenly feel more awake. He took in the new scent and sat down at the small wooden dinner table. In the distance he could hear his grandfather tinkering with something. He was an inventor and a well known one at that. He had even built some stuff for Professor Oak's famous lab.

A few minutes later his grandfather came walking in, hunched over holding his lower back. He croaked, "I'm too old for this Micah. I really need to retire."

Micah smiled and got up to hug his grandfather who was covered in dust. He hugged his grandfather and said, "Hey pop. Did my mom tell you what happened?"

His pop pulled from the hug beaming at Micah, "You bet. It took you long enough. I set aside some money for you and made a call to Professor Oak. He's expecting you within the next few days at his lab in Pallet Town. Did I ever tell you the story of how I caught my first Pokémon?" He cackled, "Well my only one, but still."

Micah rolled his eyes nodding, "Yes, only a million times pop."

His pop sat there, strumming his long white beard, peering over his small circular spectacles. He was always studying Micah, looking for signs of nervousness or confidence. He sat down and said, "Well Micah I do believe you are ready to start your journey. When you come to battle Lt. Surge I will watch your battle." Nodding he continued, "I think it is time you began, good luck."

Micah's smile faded away and he huffed, "Do I have to walk all the way to Pallet Town? Can't I just teleport?"

His pop turned away, looked at the door leading into the next room, and nodded to Micah. He stood up and grumbled, "Ok, you can use ole' Alakazam, but for the rest of the journey I would avoid teleporting, it's only going to make the trip less fun."

Micah beamed at his pop, "Thanks!" Then he turned to face the same door and called, "Alakazam are you in there? Can you do me a favor?"

Alakazam stepped out through the door, radiating the scent of machinery from which he was working on. When he saw Micah he smiled shouting, "Ala, Alakazam."

Micah returned the grin and said, "It's been a long a time Alakazam. Do you think you could teleport me to Pallet Town?"

Alakazam cheered with joy and reached out to touch Micah. He wanted to say bye and thanks to his pop but before he could he was being enveloped in pure white light then an eerie darkness then back to the white light again.

He had just teleported.

When he landed he shook his head to gain his bearings, but it took a few seconds for his eyes to focus in on his new destination. He then thanked Alakazam who nodded and turned on the spot, vanishing into nothingness. He turned around gazing at the small homes lining the streets. It was nothing like Saffron City with all its massive buildings. No, it was somehow more peaceful, more in touch with nature.

Micah threw on his hood, straddled his backpack and started to walk down towards the main square of the town. He knew he had arrived at Pallet Town because he saw Professor Oak's famous laboratory on the cusp of a nearby hill. He figured now was the best time to head over there. Along the way he passed a few homes, a Mr. Mime in an apron and some other wild Pokémon playing in the sun.

He reached the top of the hill and knocked at Professor Oak's front door. In the distance he heard footsteps muffled up against the carpet floor and the words, "One second…I'm on my way!"

The door opened with a creak and Micah stared at the culprit. He looked up and down expecting a much older man. He questioned the boy, "You're the famous Professor Oak?"

The boy had dark black, almost green, tinted hair and wore a thick orange headband to keep it out of his jet black eyes. He was taller than Micah, and to his estimates seemed to be as old as his brother Nathan. The boy smiled and laughed, "No! I'm Tracey, his assistant. Can I help you with something?"

Micah kicked the gravel on the floor gazing at his feet and said embarrassed, "Oh sorry. I'm Micah. Micah Kayne. My pop called Professor Oak the other day and told him I was coming." Micah smiled and continued quickly, "Although I was supposed to come in a few days but with a little help from Alakazam I was able to cut the trip length down to nothing at all!"

Tracey chuckled, "Ok. Come on in. I'll go ahead and fetch Professor Oak for you."

The floor was covered in a burgundy carpet. To the left there was a television flanked by two couches. To the right there were bookshelves that started on the floor, and climbed up to the ceiling, teeming with book spines dipped in red, blue, orange: every color you could imagine. Micah walked past the shelves and stared out the bay window—it was Pokémon paradise. His jaw dropped as he saw Pokémon fly through the air, sift through the trees and bask in the pond. He pasted his face against the window, trying to take it all in.

"Do you like my research facility?" asked a voice in the distance.

Micah ripped his face off the window, and spun around to see an older man, wearing a white lab coat, a red collared shirt, and khaki pants. He had sandy colored grey hair and brown eyes circled by wrinkles. He smiled at Micah's utter bewilderment.

"Hello there, I am Professor Oak," Said the old man as he reached out his hand.

Micah smiled wide eyed and said happily, "Hi, I'm Micah Kayne. You have the most amazing research facility. All those Pokémon, I've never seen so many at once!"

Oak nodded, "Ah, yes. My research facility houses many Pokémon, however some are wild, and many are from Pallet town trainers."

Micah turned back to the window, and asked, "How come I've never seen so many of these Pokémon?"

Oak laughed, "Young man, you are just beginning." He walked up to Micah and continued, "These Pokémon are from other regions, most of which are from one trainer, Ash Ketchum."

Micah just stared, "Wow. He must be amazing."

Before Oak could reply Tracey said, "Yeah, he is. I've never seen a trainer have such a bond with his Pokémon. I was travelling with him when he won the Orange League, beating the previously undefeated Drake in an amazing battle with his trusty Pikachu."

Micah gaped, "A Pikachu?"

Oak cackled, "Yes. Ash's Pikachu could have evolved a long time ago, but it never wanted to, and Ash never forced it. Together they have competed in the Indigo, Orange, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh and Unova leagues, as well as the Kanto Battle Frontier."

Micah turned, "I want to battle him…well when I get better of course."

Oak squinted, "Ah yes, your Pokémon. Do you know which one you want?"

Micah seemed puzzled. He scratched his head and answered, "No. Not really."

Oak smiled, "Don't worry. Tracey can you get all three Pokémon."

"Be back in no time."

Tracey left the room to retrieve the Pokémon leaving Professor Oak and Micah alone. Micah just kept staring dumfounding at all the different Pokémon outside. His stomach twisted when he realized how far he was behind.

"Professor Oak" he asked, "How old is Ash?"

Oak scrunched his eyebrows, "I think about fifteen…yes, fifteen."

Micah's jaw dropped, "FIFTEEN! I'm fifteen and I'm just starting. Professor, I'm his age and I don't even have _one_ Pokémon!"

Oak paced slowly back and forth, "Not to worry, Micah. You are right that Ash has done a lot, but he is a remarkable trainer. Many start much older than you. When Ash first came to my lab to get his first Pokémon he was so late he had to get his Pikachu instead of the normal three starter choices. I must admit I did not have the highest hopes for him, but in the end he proved me wrong."

Micah just sighed, "Ok. I guess late is better than never."

Oak smiled, "Correct, young man." Oak turned, "Ah, there you are Tracey."

"Got all three Professor Oak," said Tracey.

Tracey handed over the three gleaming red and white pokeballs to Professor Oak who took them, nodded his thanks, and turned back towards Micah. Micah's eyes lit up and he automatically forgot about being years behind. Oak smiled, his wrinkles showing, and asked, "Micah, do you know which three Pokémon these hold?"

Micah nodded, "Yes, sir. There's Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle. I still don't know which one I'd like though. They are all so different."

Oak walked and sat down on his couch, inviting Micah to join him and said, "Well, Let's bring them all out, one at a time of course. Then we can see if you have a particular favorite." Oak placed two of the pokeballs down and opened another, calling out one of the Pokémon. Out of the misty red haze came a small orange lizard. Micah smiled, "Charmander!"

Oak sat back on the couch, as Micah played with Charmander. Charmander's tail nearly singed a hole in Micah's shirt when he went to examine his tail. "Well how do you like this little guy?" asked Oak

Micah shrugged, "He's really cool. But I don't know about fire, can I see the others?"

"Of course, Micah." Oak called back Chamander, placed down the pokeball and sent out another Pokémon. This time he was a small blue turtle with a light brown shell. "Cool, a Squirtle!" said Micah "What attacks does it know?"

"Ah, good question. I specially bred all three of these Pokémon. Squirtle knows water gun, aqua jet, yawn, and rapid spin." Oak called back Squirtle, and sent out the final pokemon. "This here is Bulbasaur. He was bred from one of Ash's Pokémon and I think you'll notice something special about him."

Micah stared inquisitively, "Its color. It's different than others I've seen."

Oak nodded, "Very good. This Bulbasaur is shiny. Greener than your average bulb and he possesses the move set: earthquake, swords dance, sleep powder and power whip. A very strong one if I do say so myself."

Micah bounced back and forth on the couch. "It's awesome! I want him."

Bulbasaur seemed to understand the command. It jumped from the table onto Micah's lap, leaves shining in the midday sun. Micah stared in amazement, "My first Pokémon. A Bulbasaur."

Oak stood up and handed Micah the pokeball. "Very good choice young man. If you wait one moment I have something else to give you, which I derived from years of research."

Bulbasaur and Micah stared at each other; a connection was there right away. Oak went to the shelf and pulled out a small blue electronic device. He turned and handed it to Micah. "This is a Pokedex, state-of-the-art. You can use it to register data from Pokémon all over the world. Try it."

Micah took the Pokedex happily. His eyes lit up and his scar seemed to prickle from the overload of joy that had come from just the past few minutes. For years he dreamed of being in this situation, but somehow he never thought it would really happen. But the journey had begun now, and it was _his_ journey, not his mom's or dad's or Nathan's. He looked up from his gaze and questioned Oak "So how do I use it?"

Oak laughed, "Oh, I forgot, silly me. You just open it up, and point the red bulb at the Pokémon, and then the data will automatically download.

"Ok" Micah nodded. He held out the Pokedex towards Bulbasaur. It immediately said, 'Bulbasaur, it bears the seed of a plant on its back from birth. The seed slowly develops. Researchers are unsure whether to classify Bulbasaur as a plant or animal. Bulbasaur are extremely calm and are difficult to capture in the wild.' Micah gaped, "Wow. That's so cool."

"Thank you, I developed it myself, with the help of other researchers, of course," Oak assured. "I believe it's time you get going Micah. The Pokémon world is filled with mysteries, doors will lie at ever corner of your journey, but remember, you will always have just the right key." Oak sighed and reached into his pockets, pulling out five pokeballs. "These are for you Micah, so that you can catch and battle with a full team of six."

The whole situation still seemed so surreal to Micah. Just a day ago he was fighting with his parents, and now he was off to travel the world. He picked up his new pokeball and called back Bulbasaur. He clipped the ball on his belt and placed the Pokedex in his backpack. He went to go say his thanks to Professor Oak, but before he could a voice called from the next room.

"Professor Oak, its Mrs. Ketchum. She said Ash is almost home."

Oak jumped up, "I almost forgot he was coming home today! Tell Delia she's welcome to come in if she'd like." Oak turned to Micah, "You're more than welcome to stay for the day as well. Meeting an established Pokémon trainer could be the best thing for you."

Micah didn't need to ponder the request. Why would he not want to stay? Ash was Pallet Town's own hero, meeting him would be amazing. A fire lit in his stomach, "Professor Oak, do you think Ash will battle me?"

"Ah, good to see you are willing to take chances. That is a must in Pokémon battling, I am sure he'll take you up on your offer. I have never known Ash to turn down a battle from anyone, not even someone he's just met."


	3. Chapter 3

Master's Tourney

The sun pierced through the mid day sky. A nearby river brimmed with wild Goldeen, jumping in and out of the water, almost dancing to Micah's thumping heartbeat. Over the small hill that led to Pallet Town, Micah could see a figure in the distance. But it wasn't only one, there were two people walking towards them. After a few seconds one of the figures began to gain distance fast as the other lagged behind. Within no time a boy reached the bottom of the hill that crested Pallet Town. He had black unruly hair topped with a red cap. He wore jeans, and a blue shirt covered by a black jacket. On his shoulder was Pikachu and a red headed girl who wore a light blue tank top and jean shorts accompanied him.

Ash's mother ran out to greet her son. "Oh Ash, I've missed you so much. How have you and Pikachu been? You look thin, good thing I cooked you your favorites. Have you been changing your underwear?" Delia pleaded.

"Of course mom and I'm fine," said Ash. "Hi Professor, good to see you again." Ash turned to Micah. "Hey, ugh, I'm Ash."

Micah smiled, "Nice to meet you, I'm Micah."

"You see Ash," said Oak "Micah here is just starting his journey now, and I told him you may be up for a little battle."

Ash's suddenly seemed spry, "I'm always ready for a battle, you know that Professor." Ash looked at Pikachu, "Right buddy?" Pikachu smiled 'Pika, Pika'

"Wait, just a minute young man, Mr. Mime and I cooked you a full meal, you are eating before you battle." Delia turned, "Professor Oak, and Micah, you are more than welcome to join us." Delia turned back, "And of course, Misty too. How have you been dear?"

Misty, the red headed girl smiled, "I've been well Mrs. Ketchum. Working the gym and all, but I managed to get my sisters to take over for at least a few days so I could see Ash. I was hoping to see the others too, but it seems they all went their separate ways for now."

Delia returned the smile, "Ah, yes, separated for about a week at most. I'm sure someone will pop up out of nowhere, but the more the merrier. I'm just so happy to see my Ash."

"Let's go eat!" said Ash, and they all followed to the Ketchum's home.

….

Delia had cooked everything Micah could imagine: a smorgasbord fit for a king. Everyone began to chow down, but Micah wasn't all that hungry, all he wanted to do was have a battle with Ash—his first real battle. "So Ash" said Micah "How long have you been away?"

Delia answered, "Too long!"

Ash shook off his mom, "Well I'm going to be sixteen soon, so about six years. Of course I come home between journeys, but most of my time is spent away, backpacking with friends."

Micah questioned, "Where have you been? I know Professor Oak said you've battled all over the world, was it all with Misty?"

Misty smiled, but Ash answered, "Nope. Misty was with me for the Indigo League in Kanto, the Orange League, and the Johto League. I also traveled with Brock, who recently left to become a Pokémon doctor. Then I traveled with Professor Oak's assistant Tracey and a girl named May and her brother Max and another girl Dawn. Oh yeah, and I just finished a trip with Iris and Cilan!"

"Wow, all those people, and you've had Pikachu this all time?"

Ash gulped up some soup, "Yup, we started off a little rough, but we made it through."

"A little rough? Tell that to my bike." Interjected Misty

"Relax" said Ash "Nurse Joy fixed it, and I said I was sorry."

Before Misty could answer Micah fired another question, "Why isn't Pikachu in a pokeball?"

Ash shrugged, "He doesn't like it, so he always stays on my shoulder, ready for a battle." Ash jumped up, "And speaking of that battle, let's go Micah. Thanks for the food mom!"

"Wait" said Delia.

"Let them go" interjected Oak. "You know Ash can't turn down a battle."

Micah got up, said his thanks, and followed Ash outside, with Misty tagging behind him. Ash motioned for Micah to hurry up, "Come on, let's go to Professor Oak's lab, I want to say hi to some old friends."

Micah ran to keep up, panting from the heat of the midday sun. "What do you mean old friends?"

"My Pokémon of course. I haven't seen them in months, and some of my Pokémon have never met each other." Ash turned to Pikachu, "Right buddy?"

Pikachu nodded, 'Pika, Pika.'

All of this just amazed Micah; how much Ash loved his Pokémon. "So have you always been so tight with your Pokémon?"

"Yeah, he has been" said Misty, beating Ash to the answer. "It's gotten him into some serious trouble over the years."

Ash sighed, "Yeah Misty, but I would never have gotten so far without them."

"Well obviously."

Ash smiled, "Don't say you're not attached to your Pokémon too, Misty."

"Yeah, yeah. I do love my water Pokémon."

The trio reached the back of Oak's lab, curling down dirt paths lined with trees. Micah was amazed to be surrounded by all these different kinds of Pokémon. It was tantalizing from afar, but up close Micah just wanted to try and catch them all. Sadly, he knew most of them weren't wild, so they couldn't be caught.

As they curved down the last winding path a sound rumbled in the distance, and the earth began to quake under their feet. Micah looked up, terrified at the rising sand and smoke that seemed to be escalating from a stampede. Micah stopped, "What is that?"

Ash and Misty smiled. Ash answered, "My Pokémon."

"Your Pokémon? I knew you had a lot but all of those are yours?"

But Ash had no time to answer; within seconds his old friends overran him. Misty smiled and looked over to Micah, "He really loves his Pokémon."

Micah's eyes opened wide, "Yeah, it seems he does."

After all the hellos, Ash managed to break free of the strangle hold, coughing from all the dust. He got up panting, "Well Micah, these are my Pokémon." Micah stared as a few ran over to Misty, most of which Micah had never seen. "Oh, wait their not all my Pokémon." Ash reached on his belt and unclipped five balls, "I forgot about these." Ash called out all his Pokémon, and before Micah could say anything he realized Ash had enough Pokémon to start his own league.

Ash looked over at the Pokémon he just set free and said, "Everyone, these are my new Pokémon; Sewaddle, Oshuwatt, Tepig, Uzenfant, Snivy, Roggenrola and Scraggy."

All the Pokémon began greeting and playing with each other. Ash spit out some dirt and turned to Micah, "Ready for our battle?"

Micah stared, "Ugh, I don't know."

"Come on, you'll do fine."

"I…" But before Micah could reply Misty stepped in. "Ash, how about we battle first. I'm sure you'd love to see me beat you again and Micah might like to watch a battle first to settle in."

Ash sighed and mumbled, "You did _not_ beat me Misty, but it's a good idea. Okay with you, Micah?"

Micah nodded, "Yeah."

"So which Pokémon are you going to use, Ash?" said Misty

"You'll see. Meet me at Oak's battlefield in a few minutes."

"Oh, a secret." said Misty laughing.

…

Ash had gone off choosing his Pokémon so Misty was left alone with Micah. Misty was playing with her hair, trying to fix her ponytail, and Micah couldn't help but feel awkward. The way he saw it, Misty was Ash's girlfriend, but he didn't want to ask, so he figured he'd change the subject. "So which Pokémon are you going to use against Ash, a Charizard or a Machamp?"

Misty pulled her hair tight, smiling, "Nope, I only use water Pokémon."

Micah scrunched his eyebrows, "Really? That's cool, but why?"

"No reason, just like water Pokémon. They're beautiful, I guess."

"Oh."

"Let's go try and find this battlefield Ash was talking about. I've been here several times and I've never seen one."

Misty walked forward leading the way. Over the trees a bolt of lightning broke through the hot fog, causing Misty to look up. "Well, I guess it's over there. That's got to be Pikachu."

"Wait that little Pikachu did all of that?" gaped Micah

"You have no idea. That little Pikachu is very, very powerful. It's going to be a problem for me and my water types if Ash chooses to use him."

Micah nodded, he had no idea what she was talking about, but she looked confident.

After a few minutes they reached the battlefield; it was like nothing Micah had ever seen. It was a perfect grass field, with rocks jutting out left and right, and a large pool of water in the middle. Ash was standing on one side with Pikachu by his side. Ash called out, "Are you ready to battle Misty, it's been too long."

"Yes, it has, all the way back to the Whirl Cup if I remember correctly. I hope you like my changes."

Misty stepped up to one end of the field, and Micah went to the middle. Ash hollered out, "Micah, you've got to be the ref, ok?"

"Referee? Okay, I'll try my best."

Ash stepped up, "You ready Misty?"

Misty smiled, "Bring it."

Micah peered over at Ash; he looked so intense, but yet so confident that he'd win. He then looked to Misty who didn't look worried; she too, seemed to brim with confidence. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to say something to start the battle, but he figured it was worth a try, so he yelled out, "Begin the battle…please."

Misty looked over and giggled, "Ladies first, Starmie, I choose you!"

From Misty's pokeball came out a Starmie. Ash looked over and smiled; he spun his cap around and yelled, "Charizard, I choose you!"

Micah didn't know much about battling, but logically water beat fire. He looked at Misty and she seemed to be thinking the same thing, but she only shook her smirk off and called out, "Starmie, let's get this over with quick. Use hydro pump!"

But Ash countered yelling out, "Dodge it Charizard, fly up high."

Charizard zoomed to the sky with supernatural speed. Micah stared in awe, how could a Pokémon that large, move _that_ fast? It amazed him, but annoyed Misty who called over as she stomped her foot, "Running away much?"

Ash raised his hand above his eyes to cover the sun and hollered back, "Nope. Charizard use Dragon Pulse!"

Misty and Starmie looked; transfixed on the sky, but no such attack came. "Ugh, Ash," said Misty, "Where's Charizard?"

Ash only smirked. Two seconds later came a roar behind Starmie and a massive turquoise ball of energy shot Starmie square in the back. It wobbled, and fell over, leaving Misty to gape in awe. Micah could see her whisper to herself, "How…where…Ash?" But Misty wasn't about to give up in one move, no matter how off kilter it left her. "Get up Starmie!" She bellowed. Her Pokemon wavered, but managed to stand. "Good job Starmie. Now use rain dance!" Starmie began to shift from side to side, forcing the weather around the battlefield to morph into a hazy rain.

The rain shifted from a light drizzle to a heavy down pour within seconds, blocking Micah's view of the battlefield. Micah noticed that Starmie appeared to be at ease, but Charizard looked antsy, and even a little annoyed. He could not imagine fighting an angry Charizard, especially one as clearly well trained as Ash's.

"Nice counter, Misty," Hollered Ash through the rain, "But that's not going to stop us." Charizard roared, then flew up in the air and yelled, "Remember when you were just a Charmander, and your flame nearly went out in the rain! Remember how you fought through it, and summon all the fire you can, Charizard, and use overheat!"

Micah left his spot as the referee-he clearly was doing nothing-and ran over to get a better view of the great fire type. He had to see how Ash could manage to get Charizard to fight water with fire-it didn't seem possible. But just when he thought nothing would happen, Charizard's stomach turned a violent shade of bright orange, his eye's slinked to ominous slits and a jet of red flame burst through the rain, searing the drops to mist.

The fire, mixed with the rain left the battlefield filled with mist, so Micah was unaware if Charizards attack hit. But, two seconds later he heard Misty yell, "Nice dodge Starmie. Hit him with Thunder now!"

The sky rumbled, as hot lightning danced above the fog. Micah looked up to see lightning streaming down everywhere, shattering the once pristine battlefield. Then, over the sound of the torrential rain, and the pounding thunder he heard Charizard bellow with pure rage, and Ash scream, "That's it Charizard: dragon claw!"

Although Micah still couldn't see anything through the weather-beaten field, he heard Charizard's attack hit Starmie head on, and saw the water type go somersaulting through the air, and land on the floor, limp and beaten.

Micah ran over to Starmie, as did Misty and Ash. Misty stared at Ash, and muttered, "How, did Charizard...it was hard to see...but, I thought he was far away, on the other side of the field."

Ash broke into a grin, "What did you think Charizard was doing in Charicific Valley, sleeping?"

Charizard trudged over to Ash, and Micah shook his head in disbelief. "I don't get it Ash. How can it move _so_ fast?"

Ash stroked Charizard's neck and a small plume of smoke rose from his nostrils. Ash smiled and responded, "Yeah. Liza trained him well."

"Liza? You didn't train Charizard?"

Ash laughed, "Nah, Charizard wanted to train with the strongest of his breed. So I let him go, he's come back several times to help me defeat my strongest opponents. But now, he's back permanently." Ash scratch under Charizard's horn, "Ain't that right bud?"

Misty's eyebrow shot up as she returned Starmie to its pokeball with thanks, "He's back permanently?"

"Yup! You _are_ entering the Master's Tourney, right Misty?"

Misty's eyes narrowed, "Of course I am, Ash Ketchum."

Micah raised his hand, "Ugh…what's the 'Master's Tourney'?"

Both Misty and Ash turned to Micah. Ash raised his hands as an offering for Misty to speak. "Well," said Misty, "It's a tourney for Pokémon trainers all over the world. There are several tiers that you can qualify for. And you qualify by the five regions, as either a trainer or coordinator. The tiers are Master, Elite, Standard and Novice. You qualify for a tier based on your badges, and past championships. I for example would fall under the Elite bracket due to my standing as a gym leader, while Ash," she turned and pointed to him, "would be a Master due to his Orange League Championship and his defeating of the Frontier Brains of Kanto."

Micah shrugged, "I guess I qualify as Novice, or whatever falls below that. Guess I won't be entering."

Ash's eyes nearly flew out of his head, "Not entering! Are you crazy? This happens once every decade; you can't pass up this opportunity." His eyes took up a foggy look as if he spoke to someone in a different realm. "This is the only _real_ opportunity to declare yourself _THE_ Pokémon master!"

Micah lifted an eyebrow, "Maybe for you. What, am I supposed to defeat the world with one Bulbasaur?"

"No. But that's the fun of it all isn't it—that you have to train hard and prove yourself each step of the way. Do you think Misty and I were just given our Pokémon, it took us years to catch them!"

"Exactly! When does the competition take place?"

"Exactly one year to the day, today."

"And you honestly think I would be able to challenge someone of your caliber then?"

Ash shrugged, "Anything can happen. And look at it this way; all you have to do is be in the top 32 of your region to qualify for the Finals. I'm not saying it's gonna be easy, but you definitely can do it if you work hard. Once you make it to the finals there is another break for six months where you can train further."

"I don't know…won't the Elite Four slaughter everyone? That's four spots there, and then say the 8 gym leaders, that makes twelve. Then there are only 20 spots left!"

"It's at least worth a try. Now, are you going to battle me or what?"

Micah sighed, "What the heck, yeah why not."

"I'll be the ref then," said Misty. "Obviously this is a one on one battle. Get to your places, and let's begin!"

"Ready?" called over Ash, "you can go first. I'm going to try and teach you some stuff as we go, okay?"

Micah gulped, "Yeah." He took a deep breath, threw on his hood and yelled, "Bulbasaur, let's go!"

Out came Bulbasaur, glinting in the noon light. Ash raised a brow, "Wow, a shiny, cool. Professor Oak never manages to disappoint." He reached down and enlarged a pokeball, "Well, I figure we should battle equally. Bulbasaur, I choose you!"

And there they were, two Bulbasaur's. Ash's was considerably larger, and had a spark of confidence about him.

"Alright, Micah," said Ash, "You go first."

Micah nodded, and got ready to call an attack, then bent down and waved his Bulbasaur over instead. Bulbasaur ran over and stared and Micah, who sighed and spoke softly, petting his Pokémon on the head, "Listen bud, it's gonna take us time to become as powerful as Ash. I know your gonna do great though. Just give it your all, and let's see what we can do." Micah stood up and pushed Bulbasaur forward. He walked right up to his opponent and stared, and Micah called back from behind him, "Bulbasaur, use Sleep Powder!"

His Pokémon used sleep powder and for second Micah thought it would work, but Ash's Bulbasaur just dodged with ease. Micah cursed under his breath, but before he could call out another move Ash was hollering over at him. "Good, confidence is important." He looked back down at his own Bulbasaur and said, "Ok, Bulbasaur, let's show them how it's done, use Leech Seed!"

Ash's Bulbasaur shot out a seed in the sky that darted right towards Micah's Pokémon. But before Micah had time to think his Bulbasaur had responded and dodged the attack. Micah felt a grin creep up his lips and saw Ash look over stunned. Then Ash let loose a big grin and turned his hat around, apparently practice was over. Micah muttered to himself, going over his Pokémon's moves then remembered one and called, "Bulbasaur, use power whip!"

Two whips of green lightning shot from his Pokémon's bulb and ripped towards Ash's Pokémon. Ash didn't say anything, until the last moment when he said, "Grab it." And then Ash's Bulbasaur had a strict grip on Micah's wary Pokémon. Ash's Bulbasaur yanked Micah's in, then swung it up in the air and whipped it down towards the ground, like a green torpedo. With the impact of the ground Micah's Bulbasaur laid there, a lifeless hump on the grass. Micah ran over and returned it to its pokeball and sighed, "Sorry I suck Ash."

Ash and Misty walked over, and Ash bent down, his Pikachu leaning on his shoulder, and his Bulbasaur standing under his feet. "You don't suck at all, your Bulbasaur is fast. It dodged an attack that most new trainers would crack under, and my Bulbasaur here," he bent down to scratch Bulbasaur, "is no slouch. He could have evolved years ago."

Micah flipped off his hood and ruffled his hair. "I didn't do anything, Bulbasaur dodged it on it's on. I _did_ freeze like a rookie."

"Come on Micah, you don't just walk into battling like a pro." Ash looked up, smiling and motioned to Misty, "Look at Misty here, she's been battling for ages and Charizard dominated her."

Misty stomped her foot. "Ash Ketchum that was _luck_. Don't you remember the first time we battled?"

"Awe, come on Misty that was ages ago."

"Yes, well there is no need to be forgetting so soon. Your head can only get so big, Ash."

"Thanks, Mist, but the point is, Micah, training takes years to master. I'm sure you'll be great in no time!"

"Well," said Micah, running his fingers through his hair, "I guess I better get moving on then." Micah stood up, and returned Bulbasaur to his pokeball then craned his neck back around towards Misty and Ash. "Umm. How do I know where to go? Do I just pick a city and head out towards it? Seems like a _ton _of walking to me."

Ash grinned and flicked his hat back around. "Unless you have a car. But even if you had one I'd suggest walking, there's nothing like sleeping in the forest with wild Pokémon all around you! Plus, you can't catch a Pokémon unless you can find it."

Micah nodded. "Seems logical, but still, how do I know where I'm going?"

Ash looked at Pikachu and then shifted his gaze to Misty. "Did we ever have any idea where we were going?"

Misty stomped her foot. "I did!" Ash snorted. "Fine! Brock always had some sort of idea of where we were headed, but half the time you had us wandering around searching for some legendary Pokémon, or a place you wanted to try out its food!"

Ash went to speak but Micah had already started his question. "You've met legendaries before? What haven't you done?"

Ash patted Pikachu's head and smiled, "Yeah, we've been lucky with the number of Pokémon we've seen, right buddy?" Pikachu responded with a curling of its back and a soft murmur. "Thing is Micah, half the time we stumbled on the legendaries entirely on accident. That's why you have to journey with no strict path, or else you'll miss out on the actual journey."

Micah nodded, knowing all to well what it was like to miss out on the journey that every young child was supposed to experience. Then a thought shot to the front of his brain. "Have either of you ever met an Arceus?"

Misty shrugged, but Ash's eyes lit up. "Yup! We met one in the Sinnoh region. Why do you ask?"

"I—no reason. It's just—I—I heard it was a powerful Pokémon. Yeah." Sputtered Micah.

"It is. Some people would say it's the king of all legends." Responded Ash.

Micah just nodded. He thought about prodding Ash with more questions since he seemed so happy to answer them, but he also felt like he should just get a move on and learn by experiment. So Micah threw on his hood, and shouldered his backpack, ready to take on the world, or at least the Kanto region. He turned to Ash and Misty bowing his head to each of them. "Thank you for all your help. I…" he went to proffer more thanks but changed his mind. Instead he felt a fire brew deep inside himself, a fire that he, the timid boy that he was, never had felt. He raised his two forefingers to his scar and felt the tension ease out slowly. He lifted his head and met only Ash's eyes, and he could tell Ash was surprised to see such an intense face glaring at him. "I will see you at the Kanto regional's." A smile crept up Ash's face and he replied, extending his hand, "Yes, yes you will."


	4. Chapter 4

It Begin's

"We're lost already," grumbled Micah. "What has it been an hour, and we are lost _already_. Typical."

Bulbasaur trotted alongside his trainer smelling every flower in sight, content with being lost at the moment. Micah had to admit he wasn't too angry at being lost either; at least he was starting his journey. However, when you imagine these things in your head somehow you always leave out the subtle nuances, like how to get from A to B when you don't have a Pokémon that knows teleport or fly. The little things; the annoying things.

Micah held up his map with his left hand, his right hand scratching under his chin. He sighed and flipped the map over muttering to himself, "Maybe this will work." He stared hard. "Or not." As he did this he kept walking, conveniently ignoring his path, and everything in his way as he cursed himself under his breath for not having the foresight to buy one of those new computer-map-watch-things. What were they called? Maybe it was a-

"Watch where you're going!" Micah began to apologize, then looked up, his Bulbasaur turning from his private reverie with nature. "Wait," muttered the person, "I know you! You're…you're Michael!"

Micah folded up his map and laughed nervously, subconsciously grabbing the back of his neck with his right hand. "It's Micah actually."

The person snapped her fingers and winked. "That's it. I'm—

"Sera. I know." Micah stopped suddenly then spoke quickly, tripping over his words with utter care. "We lived each…near other…near each other, I mean." Micah sighed, "I remember you from school, but you left like everyone else to go train when you were ten."

Sera nodded. She had long golden hair that was tied back in a ponytail. Her eyes were a bright blue, but not just in the sense of the color, they were bright with thought and understanding; the clear color blue that only the very sharp and intelligent could have. While she was shorter than Micah she clearly dominated the conversation, with both her body language and her superior attitude. Her red sneakers, cut jean shorts and blank white t-shirt made him think of Misty and her seemingly disregard for her looks. But he found Sera to be the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. Sera noticed the staring and looked down at herself. "You know Michael—I mean Micah. Sorry, bad with names—I'm only wearing traveling clothes. You should see how I fill out a ball gown." She batted her eyelashes. Micah blushed an unsightly shade of red and Bulbasaur looked on with utter annoyance. Whether it was because his nature walk was interrupted, or his trainer looked like a dried radish, one wouldn't know.

Sera straightened herself up, and although it was clear she was joking, she did like the attention. She told herself it was something all girls like to get from any boy, even one as shy as Micah. "Well," she said as she walked past Micah, "I think I've given you enough fun for the day. Happy—Whoa." Sera stopped in her tracks, turning on her heels to peer up at Micah's face. She went to reach up a hand to move his hair away then stopped herself, gingerly pulling her right hand back with her left. "What happened to your face?" She blushed softly, and turned away. "I mean…I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

Micah laughed at the irony of the situation. Here he was talking to a girl far more beautiful than himself, with years of head start in Pokémon training, and the only thing that could make him calm down and turn the tables on the awkward situation was his _scar_. Of all things; his _scar_. Micah subconsciously raised a hand to his face, "Just a scar."

Sera lifted her face, and fidgeted with her hands. "But how…how did it happen? Was it recent, I don't remember ever seeing it."

"Nah, it happened when I was little. I just always did a good job of covering it. I was always embarrassed." He flipped up his hood. "I always have my hood on."

"Oh," Sera replied in a small, girlish voice, "I always wondered why you wore a hoodie at all times. I figured it was just a misguided fashion statement."

"Nope." said Micah. He was about ready to be off, not to mention Bulbasaur's inquisitive vines that were now poking him in the back of the head at regular intervals. He turned and glared at his Pokémon who glared back, then faced Sera again who was still standing shyly to his side. Baffled as he was by the sudden change of events he just wanted to be off and away from anyone who knew him and would pry more into his scar or his family. "Well, I think I'm going to be on my way now. Have a safe trip, wherever you're headed." Micah began walking away, Bulbasaur following obediently, occasionally sending a steely grin back at Sera—quite a victory for the young Pokémon.

"Pewter City."

Micah turned back, "Come again?"

Sera stepped forward. "I'm going to Pewter City, to take on Brock for my first Kanto Badge."

"Really, I'm going the same…wait a minute, are you sure you're going the right way?"

Sera nodded happily, her shyness looking as if it never had showed itself. "100% sure."

"Lovely," grumbled Micah, "Would you mind if we…ah…traveled together." Micah put up his hands quickly. "Just to Pewter City of course."

Sera laughed, her blonde hair flailing behind her. "Want to get rid of me already, eh?"

Bulbasaur jumped for joy, but Micah spit out his words as if each syllable were made of fire. "No, not at all, just figured you would want to be on your way and be rid of me."

"Maybe," shrugged Sera, "or maybe not. Worse comes to worst we'd at least be good practice for each other."

Micah just stared blankly. "Huh?"

Sera raised an eyebrow. "Pokémon battles. You know about them right."

"Ah," about that, said Micah as his face blushed back to that hideous shade of red, "I'm kind of a, what's the word, ah, novice trainer."

"Nonsense," snorted Sera, "you're my age, you can't be that new." Micah lowered his gaze and Sera's eyes shot open. "Really? Wait, how many Pokémon do you have anyway."

"Erm." Was all Micah could get out as he pointed to Bulbasaur who took the opportunity to strut his shiny skin under the sun.

"No way." Sera fell over laughing, then stood up and regained her control. "Wait…you're really serious?"

Micah nodded. "Well," sighed Sera, "at least he's a shiny Bulbasaur."

Bulbasaur stared, clearly unsure if that was a compliment or not. It must be said that the workings of trainer to Pokémon communication are still undefined by even the worlds leading scientists. One would argue all Pokémon understand all humans; while another would say Pokémon only understand their trainer. Anyhow, Bulbasaur seemed a bit taken aback, whether for good or bad one could not be sure.

"Well," said Micah half to himself, "what Pokémon do you have?"

Sera turned, grabbed Micah by the arm, and started to skip down through the forest. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

...

"Why can't we just go to Pewter City now?" Complained Micah. "We're not even that far away and Bulbasaur and I have done some training. Plus," he added this part with such a glee that you would think he was only privy to this deep, cryptic knowledge, "Bulbasaur is a grass type and—

"Yes, yes," jutted in Sera, "everybody knows Pewter City is home to rock types and grass typically beats rock. But," Sera stopped, raised a finger and tapped Micah on the nose, "there are two fatal flaws to your diabolical plan." Sera pulled back her finger but still held it aloft and said, "The gym leader could just as easily use a fire type as a rock type. Just because he or she specializes in one type doesn't mean he or she is confined to it. That would be utter nonsense." Sera then lifted another finger and finished by saying, "What if this gym leader takes down Bulbasaur? While he is a great Bulbasaur he is still in his first evolutionary stage and you will have already lost when only one Pokémon faints. Not smart."

"You know," muttered Micah, "it would be helpful if you would battle with me. That way we both could train!"

"I already told you Micah, I'm not showing you my Pokémon until we get to Pewter city. For now you're going to have to train on your own." Sera stared at him and smiled. "Look, I'm only trying to help. I understand you're antsy, but you need at least one other Pokémon before you go and challenge the gym. Frankly, I think you should have three."

"Fine." Micah kicked at a rock and walked to sit on a tree stump. "But I don't know how to catch a Pokémon, much less where to go or which I want."

Sera went over to Micah and patted his back. "Listen Micah, stop thinking things through this much. Just go on instincts, and STOP WORRYING!" Sera grabbed Micah by the collar and yanked him up. "Look around you, I can see at least three different types of Pokémon from standing right here." Sera let go of him, and slapped him hard in the leg. "Take out a pokeball, and go catch yourself a Pokémon, before I walk to Pewter City myself!"

Micah sighed to himself, wondering why he had decided to go with Sera in the first place. He may as well have brought his mother at this rate. Half out of a desire to shut her up Micah reached down and let out Bulbasaur, who right away sent a vine whipping out dangerously close to Sera. Sera just stared, while Bulbasaur leered with all the intensity in the world. Micah nudged him away and murmured, "Let's go get a Pokémon for our team, ok bud?" Bulbasaur looked taken aback that he wasn't going to be considered a one-Pokémon team, but heeded his trainers orders anyway.

Micah trudged along, until out of the corner of his eye he saw something pointy and purple sticking out from behind a leaf. He reached down to touch it and was greeted with a lump on his forehead and a searing pain as he fell back on his behind. Micah leaned forward half dazed to see a tiny purple Pokémon glaring at him, it's little front legs tearing up the ground, ready to charge at the slightest movement. Micah rubbed his head and began to ponder his predicament. He knew what this Pokémon was, and he knew its final evolved form was massive. However, he also knew its final evolved form was, well, massive, and he wasn't sure he could handle it. Then again, with a strong Pokémon he would inevitably be stronger. Micah felt a tap on his head as he was thinking this all through and realized it was Bulbasaur who was using one vine to get his attention and the other to point to—"Whoa, you knocked out Nidoran without me even noticing? I'm like, five feet away." Bulbasaur made a small bow, content with his talents.

"Micah, do you know your Bulbasaur's moves?" asked Sera, who was leaning up effortlessly against a tree, looking for all of the world like she would rather be anywhere else but there with Micah. "Actually," Sera said as she pushed off the tree, "do me a favor and catch that little monster first."

Micah shrugged, took out a spare pokeball and watched as the tiny Nidoran was sucked into the ball, which twisted three times and then beeped. Micah patted Bulbasaur on the back and replied sheepishly, "Yeah, of course I know Bulbasaur's moves: earthquake, power whip, swords dance, and um…"

"Sleep powder."

"What? Oh." Micah looked at Sera a slight smile appearing at the corner of his face. "I guess he used sleep powder. That definitely explains it." Micah stood up and started to walk away nonchalantly.

"That's it?" murmured Sera, half to herself.

Bulbasaur watched as his trainer walked away behind a tree and jumped for joy, his fists pumping through the air like a deranged Hitmonchan. After all, it was Micah's first Pokémon and he almost wanted to find the nearest phone and call to gloat to his parents. Sadly he realized catching one Pokémon, especially under the circumstances, meant basically nothing, and he was going to have to do some serious damage in the Indigo League to be taken seriously. At first this thought troubled Micah, but only for a moment. He reached down picked up his new friend and swung him in the air, heading back over towards Sera, who was still staring. "Let's get on to Pewter City then!"

...

"Bulbasaur, use sleep powder!" Screamed Micah. "Now you dodge that Nidoran!" Heeding their trainers' orders Bulbasaur attacked and Nidoran dodged. Micah pumped his fist and called out, "Nidoran, use—whoa, is that a Pikachu?" The little Nidoran reared back on his hind legs and fell down without the command from his trainer. Bulbasaur sent out his vines and gently lifted up the Nidoran, patting him on the back. They both turned expectantly to Micah who looked them over carefully.

Well, thought Micah, Nidoran is a fast little Pokémon, and packs a punch. Bulbasaur is probably a bit more powerful…hmm…then again there's always the typing issue. Electric is weak against ground, we all know that…hmm…oh yeah, grass too! "Yes," said Micah as he flipped on his hood, "we're catching this Pikachu and making it stronger than Ash's ever was!"

Bulbasaur stepped up in front of Micah, a smirk painted across his face. The Pikachu, which, up until this point had been minding its own business, turned and looked the Bulbasaur up and down. It seemed to come to a conclusion as it set its tiny yellow legs down, poked it's bolt shaped tail up, and produced a warning shock of electric current from its red cheeks. Bulbasaur and Micah appeared unfazed by it all, being the hardened team that they were. Nidoran cantered over to Sera who stood with her arms folded and a look of confusion on her face. Pikachu made the first attack, a thunderbolt that jolted through the warm air and missed its target by mere inches. Micah smiled, confidence now plain on his face. "Bulbasaur, counter with power whip!" Bulbasaur's vines shot out like a gun and hit the Pikachu square in the face. The yellow mouse stuttered, but stood tall.

"Damn," muttered Micah, "Ok, that's no problem. Use earthquake Bulbasaur!" The ground began to shutter as Micah's Pokémon stomped its feet on the ground driving the earth to split, and rise. Pikachu attempted to flee to a nearby tree, but was caught in a crevice by its hind foot.

Sera watched on with surprise, partially because Bulbasaur was about to beat a second Pokémon, but more so because Micah was actually _helping_ with this one. Maybe Micah _would_ actually be a valuable rival, or at least a friend to train against. She may have told Micah she didn't want to battle him because of some sort of surprise, but really she didn't want to battle him because she knew he didn't stand a chance. He would undoubtedly lose to her. It wasn't like she was overly cocky or anything. It's just she's had a five year head start on him. There was no way he would beat her now.

As Sera thought over her situation she felt something prickling up her neck. She shook her head, and nearly jumped, thinking it was a spider. But she sighed when she realized it was just rain. Rain. Nothing soothed Sera more than water. Throughout her training life she always had a trusty water type at her side, ready to take on any opponent. But water always meant one thing, and that was a weakness to electric type Pokémon, because when it rained, electric types were usually at their strongest. "Uh-oh," whispered Sera. "Micah! Call back Bulbasaur now! It's starting to pour!"

But Micah just pulled his hood on tighter and ignored her. He was in the zone, and not ready to let his future Pokémon fall out of his grasps. "Bulbasaur, use power whip, one more time!" Once again Bulbasaur's vines flew out, but this time they were met with a massive shock of electricity. Pikachu was now out of the crevice and charging up the red sacs on its cheeks. Micah stared wide-eyed as thunder rumbled in the sky, tore up the once earthquake-ridden ground, and smashed Bulbasaur into a nearby tree. Bulbasaur lay motionless on the ground, its legs hanging lifelessly to his side.

Micah ran over to pick him up, but was met with a violent shudder from Bulbasaur. "I'm sorry Bulbasaur, I didn't know what to do!" Bulbasaur released one vine ever so slightly and patted his trainer on the head, and began to breath heavily. Micah stared with horror as he watched his beloved Pokémon battle an oncoming paralysis, and all because he didn't know when to back off. Sera ran to them and hunched over Micah, cursing under her breath. "He needs to get to a Pokémon center. Micah, call back Nidoran and follow me into that clearing over there."

Micah arrived at the clearing, carrying Bulbasaur in his arms. His hood was now down, and his hair was pasted against his face from the sudden onslaught of rain. He didn't even realize though, because he was too focused on Bulbasaur who continued to shake in his grasp. Micah's muscles tightened as he tried to keep Bulbasaur from trembling again and again. "Come over here Micah!" called Sera.

"Let's go." And just as Micah was about to ask where they were going, Sera produced a pokeball from her waist and a Pokémon appeared out of the red filament. "Slowbro," said Sera "please teleport us to the Pewter City pokecenter."

Micah heard her Pokémon reply; "Slow," and then they were standing in front of a large pokecenter. Sera grabbed Micah's arm and dragged him over to the door and inside to a nurse with pink hair who smiled almost manically at them. "Hello, what can I do for you?"

Micah hung his head low. "It's my Bulbasaur, he's paralyzed. I stupidly had him fight a Pikachu when it was raining."

The Nurse nodded, "Don't worry, he'll be fine. Can you just hand him over to me, as well as his pokeball?" Micah handed it over and turned away feeling ashamed. "You can stay in the waiting room while I get to work on your Bulbasaur. It shouldn't take long."

Micah nodded and walked away solemnly, his sneakers squishing and squeaking with each step. He sighed and put his hands to his head thinking how fast things took a turn for the worse. One moment he was about to catch his second Pokémon in under an hour, the next he was rushing to the pokecenter with a paralyzed Bulbasaur. Deep inside Micah knew getting to the Masters Tourney would be difficult, nearly impossible with such a late start, but he had still always hoped on the surface that he had a chance. He didn't care what everyone thought, or how much effort it would take to attain his goal. All he cared about was proving to his parents he was good enough. But clearly his bright eyes had fogged his thoughts, and left him overly confident. He sighed, hopefully Bulbasaur wouldn't be angry.

"He's gonna be fine you know," muttered Sera, who was leaning on her hands, looking bored as ever. "Nurse Joy will fix him up in no time."

"I suppose so," replied Micah, "but the point is I screwed up. I should have just listened to you."

Sera shrugged, "At least no one can say you don't believe in your Pokémon."

"Yeah, I guess so." Micah picked up his gaze and looked at Sera who was still leaning on her hands, staring into space. "Why did we need to go a clear area when we were just teleporting?"

"Ha," laughed Sera shyly, "Well, you see, my Slowbro recently evolved, and she's a little bit off with the whole teleporting thing. She likes her room."

Micah nodded as if this was something he expected to hear. "What's it like…when they evolve?"

Sera actually turned this time and stared at Micah right in his eyes. "There's nothing more amazing. It's like watching your child grow in fast forward. It's also the most self-assuring moment I've ever felt. Everything you worked for is realized in front of your eyes." Sera noticed Micah looked down, and away from her. "Hey," she said lifting up his chin, "you'll get there soon. Once you get one to evolve the ball gets rolling and then it gets better and better. I promise you that."

Micah wanted to believe her, but at the same time, he still felt a bit downtrodden. He knew Bulbasaur and Nidoran could do it. The real question was if _he_ could do it. Pokémon, he'd gathered from what little he'd learned so far, could only go as far as their trainer would take them. Micah smiled at Sera and stood up, ready to take a walk and get some fresh air, but then he heard Nurse Joy call him to pick up his Pokémon, so he about-faced and went to get them.

"Hi Micah," said Nurse Joy ever-so-sweetly, "Bulbasaur, and Nidoran are doing just fine. However, I would suggest purchasing some potions that way you don't have to hike all the way to a Pokémon Center every time they get hurt."

Micah smiled, and laughed, "Yeah, you're probably right. Is there a Pokemart in Pewter City?"

"Of course," said Nurse Joy, "It's not far away from here. Just go outside and make a right, it's the building with the blue roof. I'd suggest some super potions to start with. They're relatively inexpensive and could end up being quite helpful to you."

Micah took his two pokeballs, nodded his thanks, and walked over to Sera. "I'm gonna go to the Pokemart if you wanna come."

Sera got up and stretched, "Nah, I'm gonna get some training in, and maybe switch some Pokémon over to be more prepared for the rock types. I'll find you when I'm done."

Micah just nodded, not knowing how Sera was going to find him, but not at all worried enough to ask. He walked over to the Pokemart, happy to be back outside, and away from the Pokecenter, which made him think about his father and brother at work at hospitals back home. He knew he was letting down both his father, and the "Kayne Family Name". At first he used to worry endlessly about telling the truth, playing it over and over in his head. He never had any desire to be a doctor; it couldn't be any further from his dream. What did biology and Pokémon have to do with each other: nothing.

He bought a few super potions with the cash his mother gave him and strolled back outside, unsure of where he should go. Maybe the Pewter City gym he thought, to challenge the leader without Sera being there, that way even if he lost she wouldn't know. He congratulated himself on the idea and started to purposefully walk, only to realize he didn't have the slightest idea where he was going.

Pewter City was not large by any stretch of the imagination, but still, he was lost nonetheless. Not for the first time—or last time—he cursed himself for his inability to get from point A to point B without walking aimlessly for hours.

"You look lost." Said a voice next to Micah. He turned to see a boy, around his age, with unruly brown hair and slim black eyes. Next to him stood a massive Pokémon that Micah had never seen. He thought to himself it looked like a Rhydon on steroids.

"What makes you say that?" asked Micah.

"Well," began the boy, "for one thing, you've passed my Rhyperior and I several times, and we've only been out here for fifteen minutes."

"Ah," mumbled Micah, "well, yeah, you're right, I'm trying to find the Pewter City gym so I can challenge the leader."

The boys' eyes twinkled and his Rhyperior grunted next to him. He stuck out his hand to Micah. " I'm Forrest. My brother is the Pewter City gym leader on weekends, while my parents and I alternate during the weekdays. And lucky for you, it's a weekend." Forrest lowered his head. "My brother Brock is the harder opponent."

"Cool," said Micah, "but you seem really young to be a gym leader already."

Forrest shrugged, "I've been training since I was really little. It's kind of a family tradition I guess. Anyhow, we should get moving if you want to challenge him today; it's getting late."

Micah thought about going to find Sera, but she did say she would find him, so instead he left her and went with Forrest to the Pewter City gym.

"I thought we were going to the gym." Asked Micah.

"We are," said Forrest, "but first I need to find Brock. You can't battle yourself."

Forrest led Micah up a path to a large house. He could hear children trampling up and down stairs, and a female voice calling for them to calm down and head downstairs. Forrest opened the door, and told Micah to follow him, which he did feeling slightly awkward.

"I don't want to impede," said Micah, "I can wait until tomorrow."

"Nah, it's fine, my parents won't even realize there's another kid here anyway."

Micah looked at Forrest expecting to see him smiling as if it was a joke, but Forrest walked right into the kitchen. Micah was stunned to see so many kids in one house, and one older boy standing over the stove with an apron tied around his waist. "Dinnertime." Said the cook. "Tonight we're having a dish I learned to cook from Hoenn."

Everybody cheered, and Forrest sat down in a seat and motioned for Micah to join him. Micah sat and looked at the happy family, so robust they didn't even realize a random teenager was sitting right next to them. Everyone took turns going up to the stove to get his or her helpings as if he wasn't even there. When they all had sat down Forrest finally said, "This is Micah, everyone, he's come to challenge the gym. I figured he could have some dinner first."

Micah waved, and everyone said hi, even the parents who smiled back cheerfully. Micah found this carefree household to be utterly amazing, and completely opposite of the strict system he had grown used to at home. The cook sat down next to Micah, and extended his hand. "Hey, I'm Brock. I'm the Pewter City gym leader on weekends."

Micah swallowed a piece of chicken and said, "Why only weekends?"

Brock smiled. "I'm a Pokémon doctor, just recently certified. I work at the center during the week, performing surgeries."

Micah sighed to himself; another doctor, at least he was a _Pokémon_ doctor. "My father and brother are doctors."

Brock raised an eyebrow, "Pokémon doctors?"

"No, no, just regular old human doctors. They work over in Viridian City at their own practice. Dr. Kayne and Dr. Kayne." Said Micah, a hint of venom creeping into his words.

"No way," said Brock, "I took a biology class from your father then." He chuckled, "He was a hard teacher, but I learned a whole lot."

Micah feigned a smile. "Yep, that's my father. Why were you taking a biology class though, isn't that only for humans?"

Brock coughed, "Ha, no way. Pokémon are every bit as complex as humans, and there's hundreds of different Pokémon around the world. I've seen many in my days travelling, but still, to learn the inner workings, and in my opinion, to truly understand Pokémon as a whole, you must know their biological traits. Every type, every breed, and every specific Pokémon are different, just like humans. The complexities are overwhelming sometimes."

Damn, thought Micah. This guy was legit. Not only could he cook an amazing dish, but he also seemed to know the ins and outs of Pokémon. This, more than anything, was something Micah yearned to understand. His family knew everything there was to know about the human body, and Brock knew everything there was to know about the Pokémon body. While inherently different, Brock seemed to think they were one and the same. "Hey, wait," said Micah, "are you the same Brock that travelled with a kid named Ash?"

Brock wiped a bit of stray sauce. "Yeah, I travelled all over four regions with Ash, not sure what I was ever intending to do, except that I wanted to be a Pokémon breeder. Then one day it hit me, becoming a Pokémon doctor would be the best career choice for me." Brock leaned in his head. "Plus, it's always fun to work with the ever-beautiful Nurse Joy."

Micah laughed, feeling a bit more at comfortable now. Brock was just a regular kid, well, guy, like him, not sure of what he wanted to do until he was further along in his journey. At least he wasn't the only one with a late start.

Micah wiped his face clean with a napkin and placed it on his empty plate. "Thanks," he said to Brock, "that was a great meal." He raised his voice to address the room. "And thanks to everyone to welcoming me with open arms. But," he turned back to Brock, "you think we can battle now?"

Brock looked at the clock, raised an eyebrow then nodded to himself. "Okay," he announced, standing up. "Could you guys clean up? I've got a battle to attend to."


	5. Chapter 5

Pewter City

"You have an awesome family." Said Micah. "It's cool that everyone helps out."

Brock smiled and reached out a hand to open the large wooden gym doors. "Yep, I do love my family. It's why I decided to take a job here in Pewter. Now," said Brock, a glint appearing in his eyes, "it's time to battle. Forrest will be the referee. This will be a three on three battle; you can exchange Pokémon at anytime, but I cannot. You ready?"

"Ah," muttered Micah, "one problem. I only have two Pokémon?"

Brock raised an eyebrow. "Really? Well then I guess this will be a two on two battle, that work?"

"Yep." Micah walked over to the starting box, taking in his surroundings with an intense vigor. Boulders riddled the gym floor, and stood to such tall heights they almost clipped the ceiling. A metal catwalk hung suspended on the right side of the battlefield. As Micah looked, all of Brocks siblings came running down the catwalk, their steps reverberating loudly in the wide gym.

"Your move!" called Brock from the other side of the gym.

Micah swallowed. This was his moment. This was it. He looked up at Brock and a big smile spread across his face; he couldn't imagine being anywhere else. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his pokeball. "Go Nidoran!"

Brock smiled, a smile that could only be so bright because of a love for Pokémon, and a love for battling. He took out his pokeball and called, "Geodude, go!"

Micah eyed the Geodude skeptically. It wasn't that he expected an amazing Pokémon, but a Geodude? Couldn't a gym leader find a better Pokémon? Oh well, he thought, it's not my problem. "Nidoran, use poison sting."

Nidoran's purple darts shot through the air, rippling with acid. They hit Geodude right in the face, but did not even force the Pokémon to flinch. Micah stared at his adversary, wondering how he managed to absorb the attack with such ease. Fine he thought, let's try a physical attack. "Nidoran, use horn attack!"

Nidoran clicked its tiny heels and barreled towards its target. Still, Geodude made no attempt to dodge as Brock called out, "Geodude, use defense curl!"

Nidoran's horn met Geodude's wrapped arms with a bang, but Geodude remained resolute as Nidoran fell back on its haunches. "Now's our chance Geodude. Pick him up and slam him into the ground!"

Geodude grabbed the little Nidoran by the foot, hoisted him in the air, and slammed him into the ground. Micah watched as the dust from the fall cleared, and Nidoran was left on the ground.

"Nidoran is unable to battle. Geodude is the winner." Proclaimed Forrest.

"Come on Micah," called Brock, "you're better than that. Let's see what you've got with your next Pokémon!"

Micah called back and thanked Nidoran, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a pokeball. "Okay," he muttered to himself, "we may have lost the first battle, but this _is_ our first battle together." Micah sighed, "Let's show them what grass types are made of Bulbasaur."

Micah released Bulbasaur from his pokeball, and prepared to call an attack, but he realized something important at the last moment. "Crap," he whispered, "None of Bulbasaur's four attacks are grass type moves. I have no idea if he can do any other moves, especially since he was bred by Professor Oak." He looked and stared at Brock, "I guess it's up to pure strategy now."

"Bulbasaur use power whip!" Bulbasaur's vine's shot out but Brock just smiled and called, "Geodude, grab them both!"

Before either vine could connect with Bulbasaur, Geodude had both in a stranglehold, but Micah saw that coming. "Reel him in Bulbasaur, and hold on tight!"

For once Micah had caught Brock off guard. "Geodude, break free, you can do it!" But Geodude's attempts were futile. Bulbasaur continued to pull in the rock type and Micah said, "Good, now use sleep powder."

White powder fell from the air onto Geodude as he was forced slowly in a deep sleep. Micah smiled. "Awesome Bulbasaur, now use swords dance!" Bulbasaur's feet stamped against the ground as the rock around him began to crack. "Now finish him up with Earthquake!"

Brock could only watch, as Bulbasaur ripped the ground apart, throwing Geodude through the air to hit the catwalk above the gym. The Pokémon fell down to ground with a dull thud.

Forrest smiled, despite his brother's loss. "Geodude is unable to battle. Bulbasaur wins!"

Micah couldn't help himself, as he let lose a scream of joy. He couldn't believe it was his first win. _Finally_. After weeks, he had beaten a Pokémon commanded by a trainer. Brock laughed at his joy. "Congratulations Micah, but I still have one Pokémon left."

Brock called back Geodude, and threw out another pokeball, releasing a stout rock type—Rhyhorn. Okay, thought Micah, one more rock/ground type left to beat and I get my first gym badge.

"You've proven yourself a worthy trainer, Micah. But how will you do against my Rhyhorn, which has much more offensive power."

Micah swallowed and yelled, "Bulbasaur, start this off with earthquake." Once again the ground shook, and was torn up, but Brock's Rhyhorn managed to dodge the worst of it. "My turn," he whispered, "Rhyhorn, use blizzard!"

Snow ripped across the battlefield, causing Brock's siblings to flee further down the catwalk, but the brunt of the blizzard swirled towards Bulbasaur. Micah stared on in horror, unsure of what to do. There was nowhere to run. Within seconds the white barrage had ended but Micah knew it was over. There was no way Bulbasaur could withstand such a powerful attack, especially since there was a type advantage.

And he was right. As the snow cleared Bulbasaur lay half frozen against the ground.

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle. Rhyhorn and gym leader Brock win."

Brock's siblings cheered, but Micah had already begun to drown out all the noise as he ran to Bulbasaur's side. He had failed him once again, when it mattered most. Bulbasaur shivered as Micah lifted him off the frozen ground, but he seemed okay enough, so Micah returned him to his pokeball and thanked him for battling so hard.

Micah wanted to cry. He was already years behind, and the Master's Tourney was coming so soon. Yet at this rate he wouldn't even be able to qualify for the Indigo League.

"You did well." Said a voice next to him. It was Brock, of course. He grabbed Micah by the arm and lifted him up. "We all lose battles Micah, it's just a question if we lose ourselves along the way. Go on and train for a few weeks, then come back here and battle me again. You're strategy against my Bulbasaur was quite bold." Brock smiled, "You remind me of Ash, except you could use some of his confidence." Brock patted him on the shoulder. "I'll be ready when you come again, okay?"

Micah nodded. "Thanks, Brock, I'll do my best to get better and beat you."

Brock smiled again. "Good, in the meantime I have to go clean, as my siblings all decided to come watch instead of help out."

Micah followed Brock as they left the gym, as his siblings filed out across the catwalk. Just as he was about to close the doors, he turned and said to himself, "Where's Forrest now?"

He shrugged, locked the door, and turned back around to see Micah standing with Forrest and a girl. "My name is Sera. I would like to challenge you to a battle."

Brock looked from Micah—who seemed as taken aback as he—and Forrest who was leaning awkwardly from left to right. "I…I can't tonight," he said, still confused as to where the girl came from, "I just used my Pokémon against Micah here, and they need to rest."

Sera smiled, her bright eyes lighting up the boys' faces. "Yes, I know. I saw." When Brock remained confused she sighed and said, "I watched from the open door."

Brock nodded, "Well, I'm sorry, but if you're free tomorrow I'd be happy to battle you."

Sera sighed, her fair hair falling over her shoulders. "I'm not. Well, I am free, but I'd be happier battling you tonight." She pointed at Forrest, "You're brother here, says you have many more Pokémon. Don't tell me Geodude and Rhyhorn are your best, I know very well that gym leaders are supposed to test, not win for the sake of winning. But this time I want you to use everything you've got. I want your three best Pokémon, against my three best Pokémon." Sera smiled at Brock's dumbfounded face, and skipped past him, back into the gym, leaving the boy's behind her. She turned the last moment and hollered back, "My name's Sera by the way."

"What was that?" Asked Brock.

"You're next opponent." Replied Forrest who was already following swiftly behind Sera.

"Is it me," said Brock, "or did she just appear out of nowhere?"

Micah shrugged. "I don't know. She kinda just disappears and reappears. Anyhow, I've wanted to battle her for sometime, and she wouldn't placate me. Sooo, it would be nice if you accepted her battle. I'm curious what kind of Pokémon she has."

Brock was clearly still lost. He shook his head, and said, "So, you know her? I…well, I guess I'll accept the battle." He headed into the gym, and turned around waving in Micah. "Come on Micah, let's see if this girl is as good as she acts." At the last moment he stopped and turned, "On second thought you head in, I'll be there in a moment."

…

"Okay," called Brock, "Welcome to the Pewter City gym. As per your request, Sera, I will use my three best Pokémon. I will hold nothing back. My brother Forrest will be the referee." Brock pulled out a pokeball, and said, "Oh, should we both be able to switch Pokémon, or just you?"

Sera looked at Brock, cocked her head and said, "Neither."

Brock shook his head, but smiled, "Okay, you can make first move."

Sera smiled, "Gladly. But first," she reached in her pocket, and pulled out large pink head phones, put them on, then pulled out a pokeball. "Let's go Milotic."

Brock laughed, "Looks like this is going to be a water-type battle. Ludicolo, I choose you!"

…

Brock's siblings had stayed inside to actually help clean this time so Micah watched from the catwalk himself. He had always thought Sera had some strong Pokémon, but he could never guess what they were, other than the Slowbro, which seemed kinda normal. He scratched his head at the new Pokémon that were now about to battle. Brock's looked like an overgrown pineapple and Sera's looked like a majestic snake-thing. Micah found her Pokémon somehow fitting. He pulled out his pokedex and aimed it at Sera's Pokémon, and it said, 'Milotic is said to be the most beautiful of all the Pokémon. It has the power to becalm such emotions as anger and hostility to quell bitter feuding.' Definitely fitting for Sera he thought.

Next he aimed the pokedex at Brock's Pokémon and it said, 'Ludicolo begins dancing as soon as it hears cheerful, festive music. This Pokémon is said to appear when it hears the singing of children on hiking outings.' Micah laughed to himself, thinking of Brock dancing at music festivals. But as odd as the Pokémon looked, Micah couldn't shake the feeling that it was powerful, and he worried a little bit for Sera. Could she really beat a gym leader who was using his most powerful Pokémon?

…

"Milotic—Dragon Pulse."

Sera knew she was at a slight disadvantage by typing, and she was afraid of Brock's move she knew was coming, so she hoped to end the battle as fast as possible. Milotic reared back its head and shot a bluish jet of energy at Ludicolo, but the Pokémon dodged it just in time.

"Nice one," called out Brock, "Now use rain dance."

Sera knew it was coming, but it still sucked. She readjusted her headphones and watched as Ludicolo began to sway back and forth, summoning rain from nowhere.

"Never mind that Milotic. Counter with toxic!" yelled Sera.

Once again Milotic reared back its neck, but this time it shot a poisonous purple gas at Ludicolo who was unable to dodge. Sera wiped her brow, knowing she was lucky to hit Ludicolo with the rain pouring down. Ludicolo doubled over in pain, but still stood strong enough.

"Hang in there Ludicolo. Use giga drain."

Ludicolo sent out streams of green light that latched onto Milotic and pulled out its energy, forcing it to shudder. The green light returned back to Ludicolo and gave it a brief reprieve from the onslaught of poison.

Even after the direct hit Sera knew she had a chance, but she would have to make it count. "Get in close Milotic and use hail."

The rain ceased and large hailstones began to plummet from the ceiling. Sera was willing to accept the damage it would do to her own Pokémon, knowing it would also help to shield Milotic and stop the rain.

Brock had trouble seeing across from the other side of the gym, but he could still see Ludicolo's back. "Okay Ludicolo," he whispered, "Milotic must be close by hiding in the hail. As soon as you see it, use grass knot and do your best to tie it down."

Sera waited for an attack from Brock, but it did not come, and that worried her. Still, she thought, there's no turning back now. "Now, Milotic use twister."

…

'Miilootic.' Is all Micah could hear, but he could still see most of the battle thanks to his birds eye view. Sera's Pokémon sent out a gust of wind that twisted, and pulled in the surrounding hail, forming a tornado ringed with ice. Micah looked on as Ludicolo countered by creating a knot of grass that tied down Milotic. As the twister hit its target, Milotic lay stuck under the thick strand of grass, struggling to break free.

…

Sera waited. While this wasn't her plan, it could work nonetheless. "Wait," she whispered knowing full well Milotic couldn't hear her, "wait until Ludicolo gets in close."

Across the gym Ludicolo fell down from the twister but managed to gain control in the end, standing up and shaking off the attack. "Good," yelled Brock, "now use solar beam while Milotic is down, and make sure you don't miss. We can't afford the after effects of the attack, Ludicolo."

Ludicolo heeded its masters warning and got in closer to Milotic so that there was no chance of missing the target. Energy began to build between Ludicolo's raised hands as it started the attack, but it shuddered once again from the remnants of the toxic. Sera smiled, "Milotic, use hypnosis."

Rings of light shot from Milotic's mouth and struck Ludicolo forcing the Pokémon to fall asleep and stop its attack. "Now finish this battle up with another dragon pulse."

The battlefield lit up with blue energy, leaving Ludicolo laying flat on the ground.

"Ludicolo is unable to battle. Milotic wins."

Sera laughed as the hail subsided, and the grass knot holding down her Pokémon disappeared.

"That was impressive," admitted Brock, "but I still have two more to go." He returned Ludicolo with thanks and took out his next pokeball. "Let's see what you do against speed, Sera, pure speed. Crobat, I choose you."

…

"Ugh," muttered Micah to himself, "another Pokémon I don't know. How many bat types can there possibly be?"

He unclipped his pokedex and held it to Brock's new Pokémon. 'Crobat sneaks up on its intended prey using wings that barely make a sound. This Pokémon rests by hanging on a tree branch with its rear legs that serve as wings.'

He scratched his head. What odd Pokémon for a rock-type gym leader.

…

First we need to slow it down, thought Sera. "Milotic, use Hail again."

Hailstones fell once again and slammed down on Milotic, but Sera watched on in wonder as Crobat dodged the stones with relative ease.

"I told you Crobat was fast, Sera. Use cross poison."

Sera could only see a purple blur as Crobat flew from left to right. Next thing she knew, her Pokémon was hit by an attack, and lay on the ground, while Crobat was back high in the air, dodging the hailstones again.

"Milotic is unable to battle. Crobat wins."

Sera called back Milotic and thanked her for good battling. She knew Milotic did not have much left after the second hail. She was indeed surprised by Crobat's speed, but she also knew the Pokémon would tire eventually.

"Dragonair—let's go."

…

Micah hit his head on the rafter when he jumped up in surprise. You've got to be kidding, he thought. He guessed Milotic was Sera's best Pokémon, but here was a Dragonair, a Pokémon a step away from a Dragonite which was basically a legendary.

…

Down below Brock seemed surprised too, but he only let it show with a smile. "You really are very mysterious, Sera."

Sera nodded, but did not reply—Brock already had her full attention with this battle. She closed her eyes and took in the music from her headphones, which calmed her down. When she first started battling, she would get so flustered that she would yell and scream and walk away, but she found music calmed her down. She sighed, "Let's show them power Dragonair—use blizzard."

…

Micah ducked as soon as he heard that filthy word. Snow swirled around Sera's dragon type and with a magnificent cry it sent a barrage towards Crobat who was hit with ease. The Pokémon twirled down to the ground, but managed to remain in flight. "Wow," said Micah aloud to no one in particular, "Dragonair is powerful, but how can a flying type that small withstand an ice attack?"

…

"Alright Crobat," yelled Brock, "we may as use whatever you have left—brave bird."

Crobat fluttered to the ceiling then darted towards Dragonair; red fire, then blue energy warping around its body from the torrential speed.

Dragonair tried to dodge, but the speed was too much and was hit by the full force of the attack. The Pokémon shuddered but stood resolute.

Sera raised an eyebrow. "That was most impressive, Brock, but I'm afraid that is all Crobat has left. "Dragonair, finish this with twister!"

Once again a twister tore through the air, pulling in the hail like an ice-cyclone. It crashed into Crobat with such force that the Pokémon was sent flying into the far wall of the gym. Brock ran over and picked his Pokémon up, and shook his head in amazement at his opponent. Brock was confident in his capabilities, but this girl Sera was amazing: so young, and determined. He thought Micah reminded him of Ash in some ways, and he did, but Sera was like Ash too in ways of her own. He returned Crobat and turned around to the battlefield, which was still swirling with the remnants of hail.

"Crobat is unable to battle. Dragonair wins"

Brock reached for his next Pokémon. "Blissey, I choose you."

Sera had never planned on Brock getting this far—he was definitely a formidable opponent. Although she knew she would not lose because of her final Pokémon, she also did not want to test that belief. Then again, battling Blissey was like fighting a brick wall, and she was going to have to summon every last bit of Dragonair's power to take it down.

"Dragonair—dragon rush."

A filament of energy surrounded Dragonair as it flew through the air towards Blissey like an organic torpedo. But just before it hit, Brock called out a command, "Blissey, use wish."

…

Micah watched as Dragonair hit Blissey without the faintest defense. What was wish, he wondered?

…

Apparently Sera knew. "Clever," she said, "defense without defending."

…

Micah still did not understand but he watched as a faint star appeared above Blissey and sprinkled yellow dust on the Pokémon's head. Within seconds Blissey appeared stronger and then Micah realized it was a healing move. While Dragonair took the final blows from the last bit of hail, Blissey looked refreshed and ready to battle. Once again he was amazed by the amount of strategy that went into a Pokémon battle. His parents had always made him believe it was just luck, and a vicious assault from two creatures. But they clearly were wrong.

…

"We still have more offense than your Blissey ever will." Sera raised a finger and pointed, "Dragonair—thunder wave."

Brock actually laughed as his Pokémon was paralyzed by a jolt of electricity. "Ironic," he mused, "that Dragonair has such powerful moves, yet you use a status move. Ironic, but smart."

Blissey shook with a fit, but Brock was not ready to give up. "Blissey use egg bomb."

Blissey had to fight through the shock, but it managed to throw a gigantic egg at Dragonair who was too surprised too dodge. The egg exploded and sent Dragonair flying back towards the other side of the gym. Dragonair righted itself, but Blissey continued to shake from the thunder wave.

"Dragonair—fire blast."

A five-pointed flame shot out of Dragonair's maw and galloped towards Blissey. Unable to move, the Pokémon took the attack head on. Sera watched as Blissey fell, but amazingly it managed to stand back up. A red flame spouted from Blissey's side and caused the Pokémon to double over in pain. But the normal-type managed to stand again, no longer paralyzed from the thunder wave.

"Well," said Brock, "it seems the burn cancelled the paralyze. Blissey, use aromatherapy."

Blissey lit up a bright shade of green and once again appeared completely healed.

"My Blissey won't go down easy, Sera."

Sera gnashed her teeth and muttered, "But it _will_ go down."

Brock understood this was his last chance to attack, knowing full well what may come next.

Simultaneously both trainers yelled. "Dragonair—draco meteor" and "Blissey, use last resort"

…

Micah watched with awe as Dragonair lit up blue and released a fountain of yellow energy that soared and hit the gym floor like bombs. But at the same time Blissey crashed into Dragonair, stars wrapped around its pink body and there was a massive explosion of energy, causing the whole arena to shake.

When the smoke cleared both Pokémon lay motionless on the ground.

"Blissey and Dragonair are unable to battle. Victory goes to Sera."

…

Micah jumped and coughed from his sudden exhales of excitement. He knew in the past few days he had witnessed some of the most powerfully trained Pokémon in the world. Ash, Misty, Brock, and Sera were amazing. Sera who had travelled with him for weeks, a girl who he had known for years, was stronger than a gym leader with his best Pokémon.

He ran down the stairs from the catwalk and met Sera, and Brock who were shaking hands. Sera took off her headphones and turned to Micah smiling: he nearly fell over from her innate beauty. "Was I impressive Micah?"

"You were always im—I…I mean, yes." Replied Micah, his face now flushed red.

"That was a great battle Sera, and while I owe you this gym badge," Brock reached in his pocket and pulled out an octagonal silver badge, "I have a proposition."

Sera cocked her head. "Listen Brock, I'm here because I have to be here to enter the Master's Tourney."

"I don't follow," said Brock.

Sera sighed, "Don't you though? You are a great gym leader, but I've done this already in Hoenn. Sure, I could get more Pokémon and train them up from youth, but I don't have the time, and I already have the Pokémon I love." Sera smiled at the boy's confused looks. "I already competed in the Ever Grande Conference. And while I did not place high, I could still take a lower Standard seed in Hoenn and qualify for the Master's Tourney. However, I was born in Kanto, and I therefore have to qualify through the Indigo Plateau. Without receiving all 8 badges from Kanto I'd qualify as a Novice and then I'd have to battle the Elite Four right away—not something I relish. And don't get me wrong Brock, that was indeed a great battle, but I want something different then gym battles, something," she sighed, "I don't know new."

Micah was completely lost, but Brock laughed. "But my proposition will fix that, I promise." Brock turned and waved over to the far corner of the gym where a man in an ugly blue shirt and unnecessary sunglasses was standing. Both Sera and Micah jumped from the sudden random appearance but Brock looked completely content. Then the man walked over and stuck out his hand to Sera. "Hello there, I'm Scott and I'm an agent."

Sera shook his hand timidly. "Um…hi."

Scott laughed, "Brock called me before he battled you, and I've been watching from the corner." With Sera's disgusted look, he quickly added, "I didn't want to worry you at all about a new battle prospect. You see Brock knew there was something about you, so he called me up and asked me to drop by. Luckily, I was nearby and was able to make it, because it was worth coming." Sera looked at Brock who smiled. "I created the Battle Frontier so the best Pokémon trainers in the world could meet and battle. The Frontier is made up of seven different battle facilities spread out through Kanto. Each of the seven sites has its own Frontier Brain, which is sort of like a gym leader but very powerful. Challengers' then battle to earn each Frontier Site's symbol. You'll be given the location of six of the seven sites, but only if you beat all six will you be allowed to battle the seventh and final Frontier Brain."

"I…I don't know," said Sera, "I've never even heard of the Battle Frontier."

Scott smiled, "Don't worry about that. I made it that way, you know. I look for the best trainers, because I want the best battles. You are the best trainer I've seen since…well, a long time. Look, Sera, Brock can vouch for me. I am serious about this offer."

"He's right, Sera. It's a great chance, however, it's a big risk. Like you said before, without the eight badges of Kanto you'd qualify as a Novice trainer. Clearly you are _not_ a novice trainer, but the bureaucracy of the matter is another topic. If you do not defeat _all_ seven you will still qualify as a novice. However, if you do manage to defeat all the Frontier Brains—and that will not at all be easy—you will then qualify as a Master, making you the same level as the Elite Four and Champions."

Sera's eyes shot open at the mention of qualifying as a Master. "So, if I beat all seven I qualify as a Master…but if I don't, I'm right back at square one."

"Correct," said Scott, "I've been trying to prove to the Tourney Board that beating six of the Brains should at least qualify as Elite level, but it's not going well." Scott sighed and looked at Sera in the eyes, "Let me make this plain Sera, beating the first six Brains is hard enough, but beating the seventh has only been done a handful of times—literally."

"Oh come on, less than five times?" snorted Micah.

Scott nodded

"Well who the heck beat the seventh Brain—champion's only?" asked Micah, feeling completely flustered.

Scott sighed, "Listen, the seventh Brain has lost four times, and two of those loses have come to teenagers—both of whom I expect to see at the Master's Tourney representing their respective regions."

"I don't know," muttered Sera, "it's so risky. It's certainly got a high reward, but still…"

"I saw him lose you know," said Brock.

Micah's eye's opened wide with understanding. "Ash."

"What?" asked Sera, who now looked alarmed. "Do you mean Ash Ketchum? The boy with the Pikachu?"

Micah nodded slowly, unsure of the sudden venom in Sera's voice. "Ugh…do you know him?"

Sera ignored Micah, and instead turned to Scott. "I'm in."


End file.
